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Here in Maine, rhubarb is the one of the first things that is harvested from the garden in the spring. It can be harvested at about the same time as strawberries can be picked, making strawberry rhubarb desserts very popular here.

We were blessed to be given a lot of rhubarb stalks this year as well as some roots that my father-in-law gave us when he divided his plants. I am looking forward to cutting rhubarb from my garden next spring!

Since rhubarb is very tart, recipes often use a lot of sugar to counter the tartness. As I was looking for ways to use the rhubarb, I stumbled on chia seed jam recipes that used natural sweeteners and chia seeds as a thickener. In this recipe, I used honey, but maple syrup or other sweeteners would also work well. Instead of the traditional strawberry and rhubarb pairing, I used frozen blueberries that we picked last August. The result was a delicious and healthier jam!

Today, my husband and I are celebrating our 13th anniversary! We were able to spend some time together this past weekend to celebrate, but I'm also making one of his favorite meals - Beef Tips with Mushrooms and these Chocolate Malts.

I've had the beef tip recipe for years and consider it a "special occasion" recipe. Since sirloin steak is on sale this week, I knew this would be the perfect recipe to help us celebrate our special day. The chocolate malts recipe is also an old recipe that I haven't made in years. Several weeks ago, my husband mentioned that he would like to have them again and it turns out that ice cream is on sale this week, too! I'm looking forward to surprising my husband with a special meal tonight!

Last Friday was the last day of school and summer has officially started for our family! I love this time of year, and I can't wait to start picking vegetables from our garden and adding them to our menu.

I've added our lunch menu to my weekly plan. It's not very exciting, but I'm hoping to find some ideas to spice it up a bit. If you have any favorite lunch recipes, I'd love to read them!